(click to enlarge)

Apologies

Careful analysis of the blog picture and interviews with the 

photographer have since determined that the person on the roof

(blog of June 14th) was in fact myself, 

and not someone who had fallen out of an airplane.

I apologize for any alarm and/or distress 

the previous misinformation

may have caused.

This man, found clinging to our roof

by his fingernails, seems to have fallen

out of an airplane passing over Yoron. 

Luckily he survived and only a few roof 

tiles were damaged.

Please take this as a warning 

to keep your seat belts fastened at all times.

Being in the midst of a farming/fishing community 

neighbours tend to overload us with the latest crop or catch. 

There are still chunks of octopus in the freezer

from some benefactor last year.

 This is last weekend's collection. 

I wish they grew something useful like apples or rhubarb.   

What does one do with so many cucumbers?

An easy answer is the classic, English cucumber sandwich . 

(Perhaps a dab of mayonnaise ?)

Mama Mia!

Seems that Mama Turtle just made her annual visit to our beach, 

looking for somewhere to lay her eggs, and met a  wall of garbage.  

I've not had chance to clear up since I came back. 

After a wander around she decided to look elsewhere.

So there goes my plans for an Eggsperiment (see March 31st blog). 

Laying season is almost over.

There are surprisingly few egg sites on the beaches this year. Last year

there were at least a dozen along this bit of coast, this year only one.

All of the beach garbage (or at least 99%) is generated by fishermen.

Those darn PET bottles arrive in their thousands on the beaches, 

flung into the ocean from the numerous 

small fishing craft along the coastlines

of Japan, Korea and China. 

The black floats are usually Chinese. 

Hundreds arrive every year. 

Someone should teach them how to tie knots .

At last!

The Marmite drought is over.

Handy sized plastic jars were available at Tesco's in the UK.

Very likely an Australian product, as the label is printed

upside down, but tastes the same.

Bit of a struggle to get through Japanese customs and the 

forklift truck was costly, but well worthwhile.

Should be no problem with yeast deficiency for a few months.

Back in Japan after three weeks in Italy and the UK.

Delightful to see family and old friends again.

And delightful to get back to my oldest friend - the sea.

Here she is on my first morning walkies with Duke. 

A rainy season dawn, humidity hanging heavy in the air.  

Four egrets winging north.

    And a fat Duke (what has he been eating?), glad to be back in the hunt for crabs.